Best Bike Shop: Bike Zoo

The Bike Zoo sits back in Downtown West Shopping Center, a location it's held since 1993 that allows it to cater to both the campus crowd and one further west, in Bearden and Sequoyah Hills. It also puts it near some of the greenways that now wind their way through Knoxville, and that make biking around the city far safer, more enjoyable, and a real option for those looking to commute. The Bike Zoo is a bit unusual in that, for the last couple of years, it's only carried one line, Specialized. But its workers service all types of bikes, and co-owner Gary Chambers says their devotion to service and love of the sport make the difference. "Everybody is way into it, for sure, and that definitely shows," Chambers says. "I think most of us would rather be riding than working, even though it's the best job on planet earth."